Pac-12 Tournament Bracket, Game Times Announced

WALNUT CREEK, Calif. - With the conclusion of the regular season on Sunday, final seedings and games times are set for the 2014 Pac-12 Women’s Basketball Tournament in KeyArena in Seattle. STANFORD claims the No. 1 seed and earns a first-round bye as the action kicks off on Thursday, March 6 and runs through Sunday, March 9. Tickets for next week’s event are still available at www.pac-12.com/tickets.

Single-session tickets can be purchased at pac-12.com/tickets. Single session reserved tickets in the lower bowl start at $20 and general admission tickets in the lower bowl start at $10 plus Ticketmaster fees. A limited number of court side tickets still remain for each session and start at $30 plus Ticketmaster fees. Nearly 26,500 fans attended the 2013 Pac-12 Tournament, the second-largest crown in the history of the event. Fans are urged to secure their tickets early to get the best seats.

In addition, anyone who attends the WIAA 2014 3A & 4A Hardwood Classic State Basketball Championship can bring their ticket stub to the KeyArena box office during the tournament to receive 50 percent off the single-session ticket price.

The fifth-ranked Cardinal claimed its 13th-consecutive top seed in the Conference tournament after capturing its 23rd all-time regular-season crown going 17-1 in league play (28-2 overall). It earns a first-round bye, along with second-seeded and 18th-ranked CALIFORNIA (21-8, 13-5), third-seeded OREGON STATE (21-9, 13-5), and No. 20-ranked and fourth-seeded ARIZONA STATE (22-8, 11-7). Picked to finish eighth in the Pac-12 Preseason Coaches Poll, the Beavers’ No. 3 seeding is the program’s highest ever in the tournament, and the second-place showing is their best since 1995-96. ASU was picked to finish 10th in the preseason polling and is back in the top four in the Conference after finishing ninth last year.

Under the direction of first-year head coach and Trojans legend Cynthia Cooper, USC is the No. 5 seed with an 11-7 Pac-12 record, going 18-12 overall. The Women of Troy will face No. 12 seed Arizona (5-24, 1-17) in the first round on Thursday. USC has surpassed its Conference win total from a year ago, while the Wildcats posted an upset-win over top-25 rival Arizona State in February.

With a win over the Golden Bears on Saturday night, WASHINGTON and seven-time Pac-12 Freshman of the Week Kelsey Plum secured the No. 6 seed, going 10-8 in Conference play and 17-12 on the season. The Huskies take on No. 11 UTAH (11-18, 4-14) and All-American candidate Michelle Plouffe on Thursday in the final game of the day.

With a 9-9 league mark and 15-15 overall, WASHINGTON STATE is the No. 7 team in the Pac-12 Tournament. After going winless in the first 10 years of the Conference tournament, the Cougars have posted a 3-2 mark in the event over the last two years. They face the highest-scoring team in the nation in OREGON (15-14, 4-14), the No. 10 seed. The Ducks boast the nation’s top rebounder in Jillian Alleyne and the nation’s highest-scoring freshman in Chrishae Rowe.

Coming down to the final game of the regular season, UCLA nabbed the No. 8 seed with a win over the Utes on Sunday, posting a 7-11 league mark and 13-17 overall. The Bruins will face ninth-seeded COLORADO (16-13, 6-12) to tip off the 2014 Pac-12 Tournament on Thursday at noon.

The city of Seattle and KeyArena is host of the Pac-12 Women’s Basketball Tournament for the second-consecutive year and is sure to deliver a dynamic atmosphere for fans and student-athletes for the Conference’s premier women’s sporting event. KeyArena is home to the two-time WNBA Champion Seattle Storm and has entertained more than 10 millions guests. A commuter-friendly city, fans have a convenient link between downtown Seattle and the Seattle Center with the Seattle Center Monorail.

Stanford is the seven-time defending tournament champion, winning 10 times overall. ASU won the inaugural title in 2002 and UCLA upset the Cardinal to claim the 2006 crown.

The Pac-12 Women’s Basketball Tournament will have unprecedented coverage on the Pac-12 Networks and ESPN, with the first 10 games of the event broadcast live on the Conference’s networks. The championship game will be televised on ESPN. Pac-12 Networks’ will have the most comprehensive coverage Anne Marie Anderson, Tammy Blackburn, Krista Blunk and Mary Murphy covering the games as the talent on the games, with Jill Savage performing sideline reporting duties. Murphy will be joined by Roxy Bernstein on the ESPN broadcast on the final day. Additionally, Ashley Adamson will host the Pregame show with Ann Schatz and Ros Gold-Onwude, with former Stanford All-American and No. 1 WNBA Draft pick Nnemkadi Ogwumike making her broadcasting debut, as well.

For more information and updated on the Pac-12 Women’s Basketball Tournament, visit pac-12.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow on twitter at @pac12 and on facebook (facebook.com/pac12conference). Fans can also follow on the Pac-12 Networks on twitter for exclusive content at @pac12networks.